Memory fragments
by p020901
Summary: Summary: Just snippets in time, of stories lost to history, remembered only by those in it. Tag: Grimm War AU, related oneshots. Snippets I wrote but could never pierce together into a story.
1. Ruby 1-3: Siege

Memory fragments.

 _Summary_ : Just snippets in time, of moments lost to history, remembered only by those in it.

 _Tag_ : Grimm War AU, related oneshots. Snippets I wrote but could never pierce together into a story.

 _Disclaimer_ : RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth the blessed Monty Oum. This is a work of fanfiction, and while an unfinishable one I hope I can do him proud, or at least, amused in his rest.

* * *

 ** _[ **Memory** fragment: Ruby-1.]_**

Despair. Panic. Hatred. Fear. Anger. General 'negative' emotions, overflowing from a falling city, like torchlight drawing in countless moths and other creatures of the night. But mostly the second.

And where can those be even more overflowing, than the Central Hospital, where the wounded and dead laid in stacks upon stacks; those who could not fled or fight for their own fate, stuck behind awaiting their ends to come. And the stubborn nurses and defenders of that place holding back the tide and paying the price to save just one more live, just one more person. Her... team was one of those. Or at least, the scattered group that was once the hopeful first years so long ago. _Jaune. Ren. Garnet. Celeste. Neptune. Sage. Zhao. Russle. Clark_. But at least, they were still alive, and fighting.

Yet not all of them were. Several other Huntsmen and women, casualties defending the fallen Firewall, now laid in stretchers unconscious, mangled limbs and bowels tied up in red-soaked bandages and wounds too great to heal with the meager supply they had left, those whom she never knew the name-

 _'No. That is a lie. Ros, Ciel, Andre, Gahad. She knows - Oh gods she knows their names.'_

A painful pinch snapped herself out of the trance. Her lips bled, her white teeth biting through. Her breathing struggled to steady, almost too difficult to. Ruby clenched her teeth. With a sharp cry she disappeared in a storm of petals, lauching herself at the nearest Ursa, it's deceptively lumbering form sprinting with full speed at the blue-haired mechanic repairing the sentry turret. And struck. Crescent Rose sliced through its muscular neck, lobbing off the head. Seven hundred and twenty eight.

"Thanks for the save, Ruby." The man glanced up from his piles of wires and gears and grease, as she quickly dispatched three others. "No problem Neptune. Just get it working, quick."

He nodded, while she resumed a fighting stance. Long bursts of fire came from another ward of the hospital, the Western Ward. A battle were raging there, the Grimm drawn to the negative emotions of the casualties than this abandoned-building. But still it was a backdoor that needed defense.

Her team'd retreated here when the week-long retreat almost turned into a rout when the Firewall fell - not due to the Black Queen Virus this time, but to the sheer number and tenacity of the invading Grimm. The hospital was supposed to be the rendevouz point, yet when they arrived there was only a handful that managed to reach here on a busted APC; a few faces she recognized, a few on stretchers. Summing up to a hefty thirty four including a score of casualties too gravely wounded to evacuate and the nurses that stayed behind in refusal of leaving their wards. At least it was fortified well enough, and they'd tried to contact HQ for an extraction.

Another Grimm approached. Her eyes narrowed. A light press of her finger, Crescent Rose unfolded into a scythe.

None came, of course, as the safezone of the Main harbor too was undersiege, where was more than 20km away from here, countless Grimm in between them, and obviously the wounded couldn't march it.

It growled. Then lunged.

No. She'd never abandon the ones in need, the ones who could not defend themselves. Never.

Her eyes hardened. A sidestep, then Crescent Rose plunged through the Beowolf's left chest in a backhand-jab, the serrated metal tip sliding in between its ribs and pinned the Grimm onto the ground. It's sudden, yanking stop shattered the thing's ribcase and tore apart its heart. It spasmed once, then stopped moving entirely.

She'd find a way. Her friends would find a way. At any price.

 _*Ba-fzzt!_ * sparks fizzled from the sentry turret, sending Neptune coiling backward, yet a massive grin split his face when the automaton's lights lit up. With a soft whir, its pentuple-barrels turned and began spinning- "Duck!"

She ducked down. And streams of bullets flew over her head, cutting a swath into the horde of Grimm down the open road. Angry cries when their chance'd been denied, or painful ones when limbs or chunks of meat disappeared when the gatling-autocannon hit its marks.

"Sure took your sweet, sweet time." She grinned back, dashing to the gate when the turret halted in a short break of its firing. "Let's hope the party over there isn't over yet, you slow ass."

* * *

 ** _[_ _Memory fragment: Ruby-2]_**

Her eye squinted, the black-furred beast's outline almost unmakeable out amidst the carpet of black fur and glowing red eyes illuminated only by a few flickering street lamps. But she'd spotted it.

 _In. And out_. She held her breath, lining the shake of her hands with the rhythmic beat of her heart. Her finger squeezed. The rifle kicked back, pounding into her left shoulder from her kneeling position.

Her aim was perfect. The Alpha Ursa's ghastly red eyes winked out, its body falling backward like a puppet with its strings cut. Soon after loud shrieks and shrills filled the air. _Eight hundred and seventy nine._ She stood up and began sprinting just in time for both the metal frame and reinforced glass panel to be turned into so much as scrap when an Alpha Gryffon crashed through it, howling wind blasting through. As the Grimm clambered back onto its clawed feet, she cranked back the bolt of her rifle-scythe, her hand catching the empty casing flying out of it in a swift motion. It burnt in her gloved palm, before she quickly tucked it into a pouch of similarly-empty casings on her waist.

 _Five rounds left, four in this clip, one in the chamber._

A Nevermore dove close to the window on her left. A great burst of speed surged through her tired limbs, as dozens of razor sharp quill riveted onto the walls and floor, chasing after her. Her eyes narrowed. A flash of light, and the Nevermore fell out of the sky, tumbling down with its wing clipped, while she took advantage of the recoil to dove into an intersecting corridor. A blood-curling shriek sounded as the Alpha Gryffon skidded to a halt at the turn and lunged inside - and then twin knives from the shadow drove into its heart, liliac irises blazing in anger, and another flash of silvery cold steel ended its existance before it could even act.

 _Eight hundred and eighty._

The purple-eyed hunter ripped Stormflowers out the now-headless body, letting it slump down on to the cold tiled floor, rapidly vaporizing. Ruby remained standing, leaning onto Crescent Rose for support. But she so very wanted to do the same. Ren closed the twin metal doors and locked them shut, as to prevent anymore Grimm from entering this wing.

"Good kill, Ren." She said weakly, trying to catch a breath. The huntsman barely gave her an acknowledging nod before he moved back to the shadowed corner opposite to her in complete silent. Their eyes met, and she hastily snapped her head away.

Muffled gunfire, floors below, reached her ears. The battle raged on, but with the preemptive extermination of two of their pack leaders, hopefully the Grimm was bloodied enough to cease their attack. Just as per the plan, which'd been working quite well so far. There hadn't been any new casualties in two days so that must be a good sign, so despite her unwillingness to stay out of the battle directly, she was willing to defer to Jaune on this one.

She took the radio piece on her ear down, pressing onto 'call.'

"Objective complete, Jaune. We got the Alphas." Her voice was a bit wheezy despite her best effort.

" _Great job you two_ -" there was a short pause. Several weapon discharges could be heard in the background. _"You guys go take a break. Me and Garnet can take care of the rest of this wave quickly."_

"...What about you?"

" _I'll later_." he tried to wave off her question again, but she didn't allow it.

"Jaune, this is your 10th 'later'. Go rest."

" _I'll be fine Ruby."_ He said coldly.

"Damn it Jaune! You haven't a single wink for 3 days already!" She spat angrily, even when she could barely summon the strength to raise her voice anymore.

" _Have you?"_ He shot back.

Ruby's throat tensed up. She stared at the earpiece, her finger clenching around it, wanting to give him a piece of her mind. But she couldn't. In the end, her shoulder sagged down...

She looked up and flinched backward in surprise as Ren was standing right in front of her, his face unreadable.

"Ren?" Her eyes widened when he wordlessly took the device from her hand.

He pressed on the 'call' button.

Jaune replied immediately, agitated " _Ruby, I said I'll be fine-"_

"Stop it, Jaune." Ren ordered sharply. Ruby closed her eyes, not daring to open them and lock with Ren's. "Go rest. Don't overpush yourself like this."

A few seconds passed with no words exchanged on either ends. Then Jaune started.

"Ren, I..." the huntsman's voice was weak when he tried to protest. "I have to-"

"You and Ruby are all the family I've left. I wouldn't lose either of you to such a stupid reason like this." She drew in a choked breath, her eyelids snapping open to stare at the black-haired hunter.

 _'He... he does? Af-after what happened to Nora_ because of her _?'_

Her fingers trembled, clenching tightly around the hilt of Crescent Rose. His voice took on a soft tone, the tone he used to calm and comfort Nora when she needed rest. Once. "Please, Jaune. Go to sleep."

 _"...Fine. I... I will take a break, after this wave is over."_ The line cut off, and complete silence settled over her end.

Ren closed his eyes. For a brief second, the blank expression on his face cracked, revealing a pained look that made her eyes divert to the floor in shame and guilt. She needn't look up to know under his blank mask of indifference, his liliac eyes were burning with memories and grief.

He shoved the radio piece back into her palm. Then he turned to walk away.

"Ren..." she whispered weakly, her eyes glued to the floor. Her heart twisted in her chest.

He stopped.

"Go get some rest too, Ruby."

* * *

[ ** _Memory fragment: Ruby-3]_**

Her hand no longer shook. Her bright silver eyes scanned through the streets and buildings below. Nothing.

An uneasy clawed at her gut. Her sniper nest, perched under the Central hospital's Bullhead landing pad, allowed her a good two hundred and eighty degree vision down at the East side of the city below (and a relative safety from aeriel attacks) yet since early this morning she had yet to see a single Grimm. Not one sight of a Nevermore circling in the sky, not a single Beowolf.

"Jaune... you got me?" She nervously clicked on her earbud.

" _Yeah, copy. Anything up there?"_ The reply came immediately. Jaune's voice was clear and composed, but he also seemed to be anxious about something.

"Nothing. It's too quiet. Apart from the Goliaths still circling around Beacon, there was nothing else. Not even a Nevermore."

A few seconds passed before the Huntsman replied again, this time his voice much quieter.

" _Yeah, I hear. FOB is also reporting the same... nothing..."_ he whispered into the radio, swallowing dryly. " _Not a single attack. The majority of the Grimm seemed to have vanished overnight... It was as if they retreated."_

"...Do you really think so?" She asked, one part hopeful, another perplexed... and every other worried.

 _"No... no, never... they could have done so since 3 years ago, and they just decided to retreat now? When we are at our weakest, when we have_ given up?"

She nodded bitterly. The Evacuation of Sanus had been going on for six months now, after the massive ramp of Grimm numbers and hostility after the Mistral Raid. And now the Council were officially abandoning Vale, evacuating to the island of Patch. A city of 8 millions, and another 3 from the outskirt towns and cities evaced... The desperation for such a thing to even be considered, much less followed through...

Ruby tightened her grip on Crescent Rose. The streets should be swarming with Grimm from every corner of Sanus, as it did yesterday... But where weren't they now? And more importantly, why?

" _It seemed as if they are planning something..."_ Jaune said, confirming her unasked suspicions, his voice wavering for the first time.

The Grimm. Have a plan. The mere thought had sent a chill down her spine the first time she came to face with that reality, and now there was only this squirming feeling she felt in her chest. It felt like Mistral all-over again.

"...We have to prepare for extraction as soon as possible." Her voice steeled. No. She must show no fear. They musn't lose hope at such a time.

Jaune breathed in deeply on the other end, reminding himself of the same thing. It must be so much harder for him, given there was no way for him to know how both his mother and Jeanne were doing right now. They were seperated in the chaos after the Firewall fell, along with Oscar and Cardin.

Yang and Weiss too.

" _They will be fine Ruby_." His voice confidently spoke up. She blinked, realizing she'd accidentally spoken her thought aloud.

"Probably." She said, a bit shakily.

" _Maybe? Nah... Hell, maybe they'd extracted the location of the second fragment of Destruction and back at FOB already. My mom's with them, remember?"_ She could almost see him grinning right now as he spoke.

Minerva Arc, maiden name Minerva Magenoavia. Mother of eight, retired Huntsmen Captain of the VDF. A woman with a fiery temper and a laser handcannon to go with it, which she was not afraid to use. At all. _'Well, she says it's a magic staff of light, but there must be some principles behind it.'_ She mused. Ruby'd only met her briefly when their team had come back to Vale just before this mess started, the woman had came out of retirement immediately after the order to defend Vale was sounded... Needless to say, neither Jaune nor Jeanne was very keen of the reunion with their mother - especially when they both had, by all means, ran away from home to become huntsmen and women. To add in Yang and Weiss into the mix... She let out a soft laugh, something she hadn't done in days. "I'd pity any Grimm that try to get into their way."

 _"Me too. My ass is aching from the spanking for running away from home. My buttcheeks are still red a whole week after."_ A shudder was visible even through the radio. Then he snickered. " _Well, at least I got off easy... for Jeanne to run away_ AFTER _I did..."_

Ruby bursted out chuckling.

And then froze when Garnet's polite cough came through the radio. ".. _.You guys done with your little chatter yet?"_

She heard Jaune choke, and she felt a deep heat crept up her cheeks. They were on an open channel?! "Right," she heaved out an embarassed cough. "We're done!"

" _Why? We're only starting to get entertained over here_!" Neptune chimed in a peeved tone, before bursting into a snicker. Just how many were listening in?

A chorus of opinions chimed in one by one, confirming that, yes, everyone was listening in. Jaune must have fainted by now given the silence on his end -or so ashamed he couldn't find his tongue - while Ruby was just cracking in schadenfreude.

Then a voice none were expecting to hear quietly coughed into a radio.

 _"I believe we've had our turn bullying our team strategist already,"_ Ren said, pausing everybody. " _Doesn't you have something to report, Neptune."_

" _Err... Right!_ " It was Neptune's turn to nervously cough. She could feel the instant awkward quiet over the radio as soon as the team's resident joker had stopped cracking his stupid puns. "The bus on the highway 2km north-east of the hospital. " _It's good, Jaune. Full gas, just leaking a bit from the coolant, but no biggy. Just give us 15 minutes, me and Zhao can get this baby up and runnin' and we can high-tail our way back to the rendevouz!"_

A relieved smile came to her face as Ruby heard the report.

First piece of good news in days.

Finally, they could get out of here-

Then the radio crackled with bad news.

* * *

A/N: Okay, so welcome to Memory Fragment! I know, it may seems like I'm lazy for not piercing this into a story - but well... I still can't, after one whole year from writing this up and it stagnating at the bottom of my archive. Stumbles upon it yesterday by accident, suddenly resparked interest in, well, maybe just polishing it _one more time and such._ Decided that maybe I should just upload them here to, partly to not lose them again, and partly so that I can... well... hopefully with your reviews and feedback I can finally see what's wrong and what's right with these works, so that I can improve my writing.

Thank you for reading! And hope that you review soon.

Cheerios! -P


	2. Jaune 1: Symphony of war

Memory fragment.

 _Summary_ : The horrors of war told through eyes of one broken man.

 _Tags_ : Grimm War AU - Bad End , connected snippets I am unable to pierce together into a story.

 _Disclaimer_ : RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth the blessed Monty Oum. This is a work of fanfiction, and while an unfinishable one I hope I can do him proud, or at least, amused in his rest.

* * *

[ ** _Memory fragment: Jaune 1.]_**

 **-Vale, Valean Industrial Port.-**

Dead blue eyes gazed down at the great struggle shown on the tactical holomap, of the thin line of Human and Faunus standing agaisnt the tide of hundreds of thousands of Grimm. The Second Stage of Operation VTAL was in its final phases. The command bridge revebrated rhythimically as the RAMF-Vanguard II laid down earth-shaking artillery barrages to support the force on the ground and to prevent, or just merely thin down Grimm reinforcement from crossing through the few natural bottlenecks connecting the two halves of the Industrial district and the entire city. This would cause problems later when it would be his turn to cross those bridges, pun not intended, but for now the important thing was not to be overrun.

Even as trains of data and information ran before his eyes, hundreds of possible scenarios and solutions forming at the back of his mind non-stop, he was still unable to focus completely. The gashes and wounds and puncture holes that ran all across his chest burnt; healings which would had taken months, if not years, now accelerated to mere weeks. The red-coloured skin itched, sensitive; the thick cotton bandages on them felt like needles of fire, and to add in his cold plate armour pressing agaisnt them... Jaune gritted his teeth, repositioning a Huntsman team to intercept an attempt to flank his army from the Omega. His prosthetic right arm hurt with phantom pain, along with the cracked silver locket on his chest burning reminders of the things he lost and earned after the 'final' battle.

Hand drew imaginary lines into the air, firing projections made in a split second. The artificial intellegence confirmed his thesis in an emotionless voice before he gave that order out in a similarily tired tone. The Vanguard again shook as its spinal cannon sent another volley over the horizon.

Jaune hand curled up, so tight the heavy duty tactical glove creaked. He felt useless. He knew he wasn't, that he was better off here, but he also knew that he was a Huntsman, and that every single. Huntsmen. Counts. -Regardless of his injuries!- His friends, on the other hand, had only been too glad to pull him out. Said that his 'injuries' could impair his tactical judgement, even if the next best place to put him was behind the 1-foot thick wall of military composite armor, still doing pretty much the same thing. Even if they were little better themselves.

The air rumbled with sounds, music to his ears. A symphony of war, both man made and Grimm. The thin line under them ebbed and flowed like a river, forming funnels, directing the Grimm into newly-set kill-zones, wiping out entire waves before their Hivemind could react. Machine guns and rifles opened fire, Dust cells rapidly disappearing into individual receiver ports as from the barrel came out condensed orbs of plasma. Repurposed construction and hauling mech-suits roared as chainsaws and hydraulic clamps crushed and mauled and sawed any Grimm that got too close, while Atlesian Paladins opened fire, streams of auto-cannon rounds and missiles tearing into the horde of soulless monsters. Mechanized battalions worked in unison with Huntsman strike teams, targetting important enemies like Alphas and Goliaths and reinforce faltering positions, _the battlefield where she would duck and weave and strike and dance and retaliate and reap her dues, flying on human feet and caped cloak of red blood bringing utter ruin to the other side, the angel of death and retribution, where she-_

Another tap, the ship's cannons shook him out of his memory, back to the truth of the endless swarm with no end in sight. The Vanguard's smaller turrets joined in a barrage from dozens of artillery pieces, pushing the tide back further a little, granting the defenders some much needed breathing space just before the next wave broke upon them.

Razor sharp feathers tattered agaisnt the reinforced window, making a few of the command staffs jump to their feet. He didn't blame them. Most of them weren't professional soldiers nor huntsmen, just normal people with the approriate skill sets roped (or for a rather few, volunteered) into this role. Around them, the aerial combat raged on, a dog fight between metal with soul inside agaisnt fleshy husks without. Vacuoean Helios and Valean Minotaurs, flying bunkers zipping in the sky, tanking and dishing out damage ten times in return with their half-dozens turrets and plasma lances, each ship a mini-corvette in its own right. Atlesian Raptors and Mistrali Tempests danced off agaisnt swarms upon swarms of flying Grimm, autocannons rattling in long bursts clipping wings and sinews, occasionally diving down to strafe at the horde below, missile bays emptying their loads into the largest masses of Grimm. From the Vanguard, hundreds of point-defense turrets sent literal hailstorms of bullets into any thing that got too close. Even the men on the ground joined in the crescendo, dozens of anti-air turrets opened fire, lighting up the sky with criss-crossing patterns of tracers, whirling trails of missiles and the iridescent glow of plasma orbs.

Yet for all they were worth, they were not invincible. Casualties mounted up as the battle raged on since early morning, tiredness and exhaustion seeping into their very bones when a single slack of arm equals death. Many fighters and vehicles bursted into fiery balls of flame or became utterly silent when massive razor-sharp feathers connected and found a critical spot. Gryphons and Nighthaunters descended from the sky, talons and fangs rending through aura and flesh; some latched onto planes in mid-air, ripping and tearing away components and pilots alike. Chittering swarms of smaller flying Grimm swept through the air, surrounding and swarming view ports and soldiers, buying time for the horde to close in. Sometimes, but too often, enraged forms merely shrugged off injuries that should have fell them then proceeded to tear into the rank of men and faunus until finally put down.

A Nighthaunter rammed agaisnt the bridge's window, shrieking and clawing and making noises that sent a chill down his spine. It wasn't scary, just... irritating, like fingers clawing on a chalkboard. Scores more carried smaller Grimms in their claws and dropped them on board. Boarder alert siren blared, red lights bleeping continously, irritatingly. Jaune told the technician to shut it up. The man couldn't agree more.

"Deploy Combat Droids and Sentry turrets. 3... 2... 1..." Streams of tracers filled the deck, peppering the Beowolves with bullet holes while the fliers leapt up into the air, only to be picked off by the more appropriate PD system. Like a game of chess, or a duel. Jaune Arc versus the Omega. Strike, hold ground then counter-strike.

 _'No. Not really.'_ A voice whispered at the back of his mind. His eyes darted around the room, to check for any rippling in the air, for any seemingly-inconspicuous disturbances. He almost sighed in relief when there was none. Not a Yuki. He remembered the last time one had managed to snuck through this far in the Mistrali campaign. _Brr_.

'Were it so easy?'

This was siege warfare. Grinding attrition, where the only way for you to win was through staying alive and fighting more than the enemy did. All he could do to tip the scale in their favor had been done weeks ago, through a series of high-risk covert and overt Hunter-ops. From simple recon and ranging down Grimm to hunting down older, more dangerous ones, destroying spawners, hive-structures, and assassinating as many Omega as they could. It had made him felt older by decades, since there was nothing he could do but supervise and help them from afar. Especially then.

Fuck Salem, and fuck her Dark Palace.

The damned bat used its leathery wings to shield its face from the streams of bullets that it was now the sole target of. The Nighthaunter roared in pain, then ripped a sentry turret off its base and threw it up into the comm array above, the force ripping the array apart (technically, the replacement for it) for the third time that day. The holographic map and images buzzed out, disconnected from the battle below. He was flying blind. Jaune scowled, shouting an order to rerout the server through a nearby frigate through the short-range relay instead. Someone took the chance to hand him a mug full of a shake made of sweet coffee syrup and grounded up ration bar. Jaune took a gulp, the liquid sticking onto his throat. The taste, while terrible, reminded him of pancakes. His fingers around the mug tightened, and he had the urge to pull out a flask and lace the shake with-

The holomap came back online. Jaune gave a 'good job' nod to the comm technician, as the chief engineer reported in that they were still trying to fix the damage.

And now, his turn.

* * *

 _A/N_ : a short one, one intended to go with part 2 and 3 but ultimately doesn't fit due to mood dissonance.


	3. Jaune 2-3: A broken man

Memory fragment.

 _Summary_ : The horrors of war told through eyes of one broken man.

 _Tags_ : Grimm War AU - Bad End , connected snippets I am unable to pierce together into a story.

 _Disclaimer_ : RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth the blessed Monty Oum. This is a work of fanfiction, and while an unfinishable one I hope I can do him proud, or at least, amused in his rest.

* * *

[ ** _Memory fragment: Jaune-2.]_**

The War is over. The war is not.

Why is he still fighting, he wonders.

What is left of the past that he hangs onto, of dreams dashed and hopes dead.

What is left of the future that he fears to live, of families torn apart and friends long dead.

Another bottle emptied down his throat.

* * *

Upon his shores of dreams, she comes sometimes. Sometimes in her white cloak, her Mantle inherited and earned through sweat and sacrifices; sometimes she would cry, cry for lost comrades and souls laid to rest; sometimes she would laugh, smile that plucky half-grin or if he was lucky the beautiful full grin that tells him things would all be okay, and that they, the team, the Team, JNPR and RWBY and SSSN and CRDL and CFVY and so many others, all those youthful (once) huntsmen and women and soldiers and heros that will carry the weight of this world and deliver it to salvation. Sometimes they would stand back to back, reaper and knight, wings of hope spread wide as they fight tooth and nail for a shared future of no more fighting, of no more families torn apart and lost friends. Sometimes, they would stand face to face, Ruby and Jaune, distance so close and wreathed together by the glowing sash of red strings guided by that lost Maiden so long ago.

 _'It's going to be okay.'_

Sometimes, she would come in a cloak stained red, silvery white washed red with her own running blood, ruined arm failing to link his aura to her, as there were no more to give. And she would lift a hand to carress his face, her still smiling that half-grin saying that all would be okay because they won.

' _We won.' Orbs of red trailed down from split lips, white toothy grin stained with red from hacking coughs._

 _'We won.' Orbs of hot tears rolled down scraggy cheekbone, mixing with blood and bitter tang._

 _The hand fell limp and dropped to the mud-soaked battleground._

They won, and lost.

 _It's going to be okay -_ repeating those words felt like poison to his throat.

* * *

After the victory at Vale, the Combined Remnant Force cast their gazes over the horizon to territories lost to the dark swarm, territories to be reclaimed. And beck to call, the combined remnant forces dragged their broken limbs in match-steps and weary arms again raise weapons pointed at the enemy, reclaimation beating in their heart of hearts push them onward so that Remnant can claim a victory.

* * *

[ _ **Memory fragment: Jaune-3]**_

 _He remembers smoke. Of ashes and rain, soaking onto the ground creating mud. Mud pooling, sloshing with steam and smoke raising slowly from burning wreckages, the rain water doing nothing to stop the flame of liquidified Dust and the still smoldering ammos stores inside and the fizzing, slagged shield generators still glowing hot red with heat. Mud pooled and sloshed over the fallen bodies of the thousands of fallen defenders of Vale, mud pooled and sloshed with blood under footsteps of the hundreds of medical teams treating the wounded directly on the ground hallowed by combat and remnants of an army pulling itself together, the few that could still hold a weapon and stand staggering to secure the perimeter. Comrades helping another with a hand, teammates a leg, friends carrying and strangers dragging the wounded back to medical camp or the nearest person knowing what to do despite the vocal protests of 'letting me do it myself' from people clearly very much shouldn't be. Occasionally, a hoarse cry of pain can be heard, of men and women hunching over the still warm corpses of the recent, honored deaths, or just the wandering lost souls finally falling onto their knees and let reality take them from their rage-and-grief-inducted state, and finally let themselves cry._

 _In the background, a piece of the rampart finally fell down, a piece that had stubbornly stood tall and proud in front of the Grimm tide to protect a squad of wounded men behind. A battleship flew high, its clipped wings soaring like a phoenix rebirthed in flames, refusing to go down even after the battle was over and its captain allowed it to rest. And under the shadows of war, a knight finally let himself fall to his knees, onto the mud bound with blood and death. His hands stained with blood, the light had long faded from his broken sword and bright blue eyes, now only left behind a cold metal grey, bitter and empty ashes of losses and deaths in a shell of a man, if that was what it was even called. His broken armor clacked as he leaned back, as he tilted his head slowly up to gaze at the soaking rain, at the sky and clouds reddened by the setting sun, letting the water soak his hair, seeping into the cracks and holes in his armor and washed away the blood, trailing down and down his non-functioning right hand still clutching tightly onto a fistful of scattered rose petals and a small silvered emblem._

 _As more rain continued to poured onto the kneeling man, and his back hit the muddied ground below, he noticed something before everything went dark._

 _The water, too, was red._

* * *

The faucet closes with a wet squeak. The liquid inside stops pouring out, and after a few moments, the shade of red retracts to a natural colorless, crystal clear state.

The weary general looks up from the metal basin of camp to the sheet of mirror hanging on a quick pin, and see the man he has become.

Stubbed chin and uncut blond hair. Scars line his face, the red young skin of those healing and the scabbed crag of those would not. Bags and lines of wrinkles run underneath blue eyes jaded, dead and desolated like the scorched hills of Vale. Prosthetic arm whirring silently, tired heart still beating in chest, and a mind too used to the horrors of war.

He does not like what he sees.


End file.
